CELTIC FESTIVALS IN CANADA

EVERYTHING CELTIC: There’s nothing like the sound of bagpipes to stir the soul or a highland jig to get the blood pumping. And nowhere in Canada will visitors find more Celtic culture than in the Atlantic provinces.

Fiddle music fills the air all along the Ceilidh Trail highway on Nova Scotia’s Cape Breton Island. “Ceilidh” is Gaelic for “kitchen party,” and sure enough, summertime in this region brings everything from weekly ceilidhs in Inverness and Mabou to the annual “Scottish” concert in Broad Cove in July. Another don’t-miss on Cape Breton Island is the Highland Village, a living history museum dedicated to the province’s Scottish and Gaelic history. Back on the mainland, Pictou – known as “The Birthplace of New Scotland” – is the kind of town where on a summer’s night visitors often hear the drone of the bagpipes and the beat of the drums rising over the rooftops (1-800-565-0000 or www.novascotia.com)
Celtic music fills the air at summer festivals in St. John’s.
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Scenic and tranquil, Southern Kings County in Prince Edward Island is another area steeped in Scottish heritage. The region’s past is on display at sites such as the Point Prim Lighthouse, the oldest on the island, and the Polly Cemetery, named for the ship that brought the first Scottish settlers here. In summertime, the county is also the setting for numerous ceilidhs and Celtic festivals. Elsewhere in PEI, Orwell Corner Historic Village near Charlottetown depicts an 1890s rural crossroads community, complete with costumed Scottish and Irish immigrants plus a weekly event called Ceilidh at the Corner, on Wednesdays from June 5 to September 25. And in Summerside, the College of Piping and Celtic Performing Arts of Canada stages a series of delightful concerts and other special events throughout the summer season (1-888-734-7529 or www.peiplay.com)

Newfoundland and Labrador’s rich cultural history is evident wherever visitors turn, from the food to the inflections to the terrific live music in the pubs of St. John’s. But the Irish heart of the province lies south of St. John’s, on the Irish Loop, where the heritage of the early settlers is still strongly apparent. Historical attractions include the Cape Race Lighthouse and the ongoing excavation at the 17th-century Colony of Avalon. As a bonus, the region is a treasure trove of natural attractions, like whale-, iceberg- and caribou-watching, coastal hiking trails, immense bird colonies and spectacular ecological reserves (1-800-563-6353 or www.gov.nf.ca/tourism or www.irishloop.com)

A good many festivals and events in Atlantic Canada have a distinct Celtic accent.
One of the biggest is the Nova Scotia Tattoo, from June 29 to July 7 at the Halifax Metro Centre (902/ 451-1221 or www.nstattoo.ca) In New Brunswick, Canada’s Irish Festival on the Miramichi, from July 18-21, features music, pubs, sports and more in Miramichi (506/778-8810 or www.canadasirishfest.com), while the New Brunswick Highland Games and Scottish Festival runs July 26-28 in Fredericton (1-888-368-4444 or www.nbhighlandgames.com) And on Newfoundland’s Irish Loop, the town of Ferryland offers both the Southern Shore Shamrock Festival from July 26-28 and, from June to September, Island to Island: An Irish Dew, a dinner-theatre show depicting the area’s rich past (709/432-2052 or www.ssfac.com)

January 10, 2004   Posted in: Canada